The NFL will hold a moment of silence during all its Week 17 games for Hall of Fame coach and broadcasting icon John Madden, who died earlier Tuesday at age 85.
“As you know, the NFL lost a true giant on Tuesday with the passing of John Madden,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told all clubs Thursday in a memo obtained by ESPN. “To help honor his legacy, we ask that each home team in Week 17 observe a moment of silence in his memory just prior to the start of the game.”
The moment of silence will happen just prior to the playing of the National Anthem.
Madden gained fame as the coach of the Raiders for 10 seasons, making it to seven AFC title games and winning the Super Bowl following the 1976 season. He compiled a 103-32-7 regular-season record, and his .759 winning percentage is the best among NFL coaches with more than 100 games.
After he retired from coaching at age 42, he entered the television booth and educated and entertained millions on NFL broadcasts each week from 1979 to 2009, working for four networks. In addition, he became an omnipresent pitchman in commercials and became the face of Madden NFL Football, one of the most successful sports video games of all time.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
